I clicked on the video below, of trumpeter / singer Jeff Healey and friends swinging through I’M GOING TO SIT RIGHT DOWN AND WRITE MYSELF A LETTER and found myself crying.

I felt grief that Jeff is no longer alive and joy at the music he created and creates.  No one who can create such beauty is dead, I think, although I mourn his departure from the scene.

Here’s the music; all the details are explained at the end:

Photos of Layla Zoe by Mark Gommer

Lovely Layla graciously agreed to do a Q&A with me for Press +1 (which I am re-posting) and here’s how that conversation unfolded:

Layla, the night I saw you perform, you said that you were born to sing. I know that you’ve been singing since you were four years old, but how old were you when you realized that you had to pursue music as a career?

I guess I always had a natural drive and desire to be on stage from a very young age. I used to enjoy writing short skits and performing them for friends and family, as well as lip synching to songs I liked and dressing up in costume. I was always a very creative kid I guess. I sang in school musicals in high school, then performed in my dad’s band for a very short time at age fourteen, as well as playing around with friends who played instruments and doing a little busking on Granville Street (Vancouver). Then after moving back to Vancouver Island at age 18 I joined a cover band and played up and down Vancouver Island in local bars for 3½ years. All of these experiences helped me to grow as a singer/performer and contributed to my passion for music. But it was really when I attended the Hornby Island Blues Workshop in 2003 and met some of the best Blues artists in Canada who were teaching at the workshop, that I decided it was really time to break away from the cover band and start getting serious about my “career” in the Blues…

I can tell you now, that several of the teachers at the workshop that first year (Ellen McIlwaine, Suzie Vinnick, David Gogo, Doug Cox, etc.) said things to me which directly contributed to my decision to get serious about MY music. It always means a lot to me when my fans come up and say nice things at the shows, but I guess I have to admit that sometimes it means even more when my peers take the time to say supportive things. And many of the instructors at the workshop made a point of telling me how much they liked my voice, to keep on singing, and that I had the chance to have a career in music, if that is what I wanted. At the time, I was still quite young, and I greatly respected some of the musicians who were saying these things to me, so I guess it was the extra push/boost I needed to make some big changes/choices I had already been contemplating. I ended up leaving my cover band not long after that and began writing songs for my first album. I started going by my name and no longer a band name, and began working on my guitar and harmonica playing. The rest is history…because I have released an album every year as Layla Zoe since then, and have never looked back….

Are you a classically trained vocalist?

I have no classical training, although I did take one year of Jazz Vocal at Malaspina College in Nanaimo, BC, the same school and program where Diana Krall studied. But to be honest, life sort of got in the way of my being able to completely absorb and get the most from that year at school. I feel that I learnt more from the 3½ years I spent in my early cover band, than I did from the year at school studying Jazz Vocal. I guess for me, it was necessary that I get out there and actually see what it was like to be on stage every night in a different town, and to load the gear in and out, and sing until 3am, etc., etc…In my opinion that kind of experience cannot be taught in a classroom environment.

Do you rehearse before your live performances?

Layla with Wayne "Shakey" Dagenais

Depending on the show, of course there are rehearsals for the shows, so that everyone is comfortable with the material. But if you are asking if I warm-up before every show, then the answer is no. I probably should…But I tend to just choose the easier songs for the first set, which helps me to “warm-up” on stage. I leave the “heavier” songs for a little later in the show, so my voice is ready.

What are some of the techniques and remedies that you use to keep your voice in great shape?

Well, I smoke and drink, so not sure that I am very good to my voice sometimes, haha! But I sing every day which helps keep the juices flowing. And I use lemon, hot water, and honey, which is a very helpful remedy for when things get cruddy in the old wind pipe, haha! As a redhead, I also talk a lot, haha!! So that keeps my voice pretty warmed up.

Do you utilize a kind of ‘method acting’ to help summon strong emotions while singing or do they just come to you naturally?

I am completely unconscious of anything I am doing on stage when it comes to “pulling out the emotions”…I do not think about it, or try, it simply comes naturally. I feel that something takes over my body and I begin to “channel” the past, present and future pains I have experienced and am experiencing. It is all very difficult to describe. It’s just that the music takes me away, and sometimes it is almost hard to “come back” to earth after the shows. It takes me some time to get grounded after I perform. I give all of myself. I give my listeners my heart, on a platter…

You sure do, Layla! When you were growing up, did you listen to a steady diet of Blues music or were there also other genres in your collection?

Layla singing for the Kingston Blues Society on Feb. 12, 2011

I listened to a lot of Blues growing up because my father loved the Blues. I must thank him for introducing me to many of the musicians I still listen to and enjoy today. It was normal around my house to hear Robert Johnson, Muddy Waters, Billie Holiday, etc., during dinner time. But the Blues is not the only music I enjoyed at home as a child, or later on as a teenager and young adult. I have always been into MANY kinds of music. Everything from classical, to jazz, to death metal! I just love music…And at a young age I bought my first record player and spent more time with it, then with my friends. I have always been drawn most of all to the music from the 60′s/70′s period. I guess I was drawn to the lyrical content of bands from those decades and also the psychedelic/experimental nature of the music.

Who are some of your favourite artists right now?

Long list, but I will name a few here:

Frank Zappa, Muddy Waters, Roy Buchanan, Peter Green, Derek Trucks, Bob Dylan, Tom Waits, Joni Mitchell, Neil Young, Eva Cassidy, Billie Holiday, Etta James, Susan Tedeschi, Kaki King, Tanya Tagaq, Paul Reddick, Harry Manx, Janis Joplin, Ry Cooder, Howlin’ Wolf, Henrik Freischlader, The Raconteurs, etc., etc…

Do you have a favourite song that you’ve written? If so, can you tell us what it’s called and a little bit about the story behind it?

Hmmm, tough question. I feel good about several of my songs because they often express and showcase how I am feeling at the time and that is always changing from year to year. But I guess some of my faves are “Someday” and “Disappearing Delta” (off the album Shades of Blue), “Black Eyes Blacker”, “I Am Free” and “Soft as a Feather” (off the album Hoochie Coochie Woman) and the whole album “The Firegirl” which was a labour of love and has some of my best songwriting on it. However, I really feel that my newest album which I just made in Germany in December, 2010, has some of the best writing I have ever done. It will be released in the fall of 2011 in Europe and then Canada, and I think it is my best album yet…

You’ve met some of the biggest names in the Blues. Do you have any interesting or funny stories that you can share about any of your contemporaries?

Well, I have some stories, but probably some of them should not be told, haha! But for example, meeting Jeff Healey was a wonderful experience. He said some very kind things to me and performing with him was a highlight of my career. As well as saying some wonderful things about my voice, Jeff also said that he hoped I would have the chance to meet and work with BB King someday before he was gone. It was sad when I thought back to this comment after Jeff died, because he left us before BB in the end…But I do hope to meet and work with BB someday and Jeff’s belief in me really put things in perspective for me back then.

How did you end up meeting Jeff Healey and playing with him?

I was connected to Jeff through a mutual friend/musician named Danny Marks. I was working with Danny in Toronto performing at a few shows and then we both performed at Jeff Healey’s bar with Jeff. It was a great night and one I won’t soon forget. I then ended up performing again with Jeff, but this time without Danny there, and that was not long before Jeff passed away.

You said that you spend your pocket money on records. What are the last three records that you bought?

Well, the last treats I bought myself were:

The Allman Brothers “Dreams” box set on vinyl, which is rare and hard to find, as well as being a little pricey, but is totally worth every penny since it has tracks off all of their albums including the early stuff. I also bought Humble Pie’s album “Rockin’ at the Fillmore”, Ry Cooder’s album “Boomer’s Story” and Traffic’s album “On the Road” which is a really great record!

What’s your favourite red wine?

I tend to buy what I can afford, haha! But I really like Yellow Dune Bin 39, Barker’s Reserve, from Australia. It is affordable and very good.

What do you like to do when you’re not performing (aside from listening to records, etc.)?

I enjoy spending time with friends and family when I can, reading, writing, watching good films, travelling and of course, getting tattooed!

Are you working on a new album at present?

I am always writing for the next album and then the next album. But I just made my “dream” album in Germany in December of 2010, so now I am just patiently waiting for its release in Germany in late 2011. But yes, I am always writing, no matter what the situation.

Do you play a lot of Blues festivals? I really hope that you can play the Limestone City Blues Festival in Kingston this August!

I love performing at festivals and have some great ones booked already in Canada and Europe this year. I would be happy to return to Kingston for some shows, so hopefully that happens. Sure was a great crowd there for me last time, and lots of support which feels great.

What are your touring plans for this year?

You can find most of my tour dates at www.myspace.com/laylazoe and I look forward to festivals in Belgium, Switzerland, Quebec, Halifax and Germany this year.

Thank you so much Layla for taking the time to talk to me and to share yourself and your love of the Blues with Press +1’s (and my blog’s) audience. I wish you much continued success with your music career and look forward to seeing you perform again soon!

I don’t even have a specific memory with this song — but I remember VERY well the flutters occasioned by the opening notes of slow songs at these dances, and “Angel Eyes” would have been a staple in my early years of high school. Just as I’ve written about Bryan Adams’ “Heaven,” a song like “Angel Eyes” sends me uncomfortably swiftly into a time warp to younger days and nervous moments — moments that, apparently, left deep impressions, if not scars.

Ah, well.

It appears the song came out in June of 1989. This would have been the end of our freshman year in high school (ooh, and in the midst of MK and I being on opposing sides of an epic teen girl rivalry). I would have been working at the ice cream shop and babysitting at the lake; I would have been just gearing up round 2 of romance with the boy across the baseball field and enjoying reuniting (non-romantically) with the just-graduated older boy. So chances are pretty good I swooned for “Angel Eyes” and every other ballad that came my way in these heady days.

Goodness gracious. I’d like to think I’m more even-keeled and less sensitive than I was then, but … I’m not even sure that’s true. I’m definitely not as cute or lucky with the boys.

And can we trust Wikipedia that this song was co-written by John Hiatt? Whom MK and I would go on to love in later years? Who knew?

Last night, on February 12, 2011, I, along with about 120 other blessed people (who didn’t attend the Heart concert at Kingston’s KROCK Centre) were treated to a vocal performance that none of us will likely ever forget! Only once in a generation is a voice born with the musical power possessed by Ms Layla Zoe, and as she told us last night, “I was born to sing.”

The Kingston Blues Society presented opening band Tore Down (Belleville, ON) who were also very good and pulled people to the dance floor from the beginning of their set, followed by Canada’s “Darling of the Blues”, Layla Zoe and her “All-Star Band.” Layla’s band hadn’t actually played together as a unit before – as keyboard player Wayne “Shakey” Dagenais told me – but you wouldn’t have known it, because they were nothing short of superb! Dagenais (whose keyboard solos were particularly riveting), guitarist Pete Schmidt, bassist James Rasmussen and drummer Drew Austin all allowed their instrumental prowess to shine in the brightest light and they enticed everyone to the dance floor and kept them there all night. They are seasoned professionals as Dagenais also plays for the Gary Kendall Band and Rasmussen and Austin with the David Rotundo Band while Schmidt has played with both, among countless others.

From the moment she sang her first notes, Layla proved that she’s a blues legend in the making. While she’s been called the reincarnate of Janis Joplin because she sounds just like her and has her whole vibe down pat to the point that it’s surreal, young Ms Zoe, didn’t perform any Joplin songs last night but stuck to her own originals, along with blues & roots classics by the likes of Bob Marley (“No Woman No Cry”) B.B. King (“The Thrill Is Gone”), Etta James (“I’d Rather Go Blind” – my personal favourite rendition of the evening which left my jaw gaping to the floor!) and Muddy Waters (“Hoochie Coochie Man”) in which she interwove her own lyrics throughout the songs, personalizing them to fit her like a glove.

Layla’s spirit is incandescent and her motive is true. Dressed in a paisley, turquoise, orange & white hippy-style sun dress that matched her tattoos – you couldn’t tell where the dress ended and the tattoos began – sporting magnificent 4-inch turquoise pumps, with that long strawberry blond hair cascading down her shoulders, Layla looks and moves the part (why she didn’t get the role of Janis Joplin in the upcoming biopic, I don’t know! She would have been perfect for it!), but above all, it’s her glorious voice and original renditions of blues standards that are 100% convincing. When I wasn’t on the dance floor, I closed my eyes and listened to her sing and felt as if I’d transcended the space I was in to a place called Blues Heaven. I’d look over at the other women sitting at my table and the look on their faces told me that I wasn’t dreaming…Layla Zoe is absolutely extraordinary!!

Layla, who was born in Victoria, British Columbia, now makes Montreal her home. She teaches Blues in the School programs around the country and has five independent releases to date: You Will (EP – 2004), Shades of Blue (2006), Hoochie Coochie Woman (2007), Live at Errington Hall (2008) and The Firegirl (2009), several of which are available through her website at www.layla.ca or CDBaby.

“Layla Zoe has performed with the late great Jeff Healey, the Downchild Blues Band, Danny Marks, Henrik Freischlader and countless others, who have sung high praises of Layla’s ability to channel her strong emotions into her performances.” She has signed with Cable Car Records and will be releasing her 6th album in the fall of 2011.

If you are a blues fan or enjoy dynamic female vocalists, DO NOT MISS an opportunity to see Layla Zoe perform live! I have never heard a woman’s voice THIS awesome, live in concert, EVER!!

Set List (in no particular order)

Hound Dog
You Won’t Call (original)
Rock Me Baby
Rock and Roll Guitar Man (original)
Voodoo Woman
Good Morning Little School Boy
Walking Blues
Sweet Home Chicago
The Thrill Is Gone
Leave You For Good (original)
No Woman No Cry
Hey Bartender
Bad Sign
Hoochie Coochie Woman
I’d Rather Go Blind

Go here to purchase Greg’s Books:

Download MP3

Download From iTunes

The chorus is what really gets me:

So tonight I’ll ask, the stars above,
“How did I ever win your love?”
What did I do?
What did I say,
to turn your angel eyes my way?

I knew it was from the 80s but I wasn’t sure what it was called so when I got home I googled it: the song is ‘Angel Eyes’ by The Jeff Healey Band.  For some reason today I was still thinking about it so it became my first ever iTunes purchase (hard to believe huh?).   Enjoy

Just in case you’re wondering, I have already listened to the song about five times since buying it  Yep, I am one of those.

Wedding photo by Mint & Sage

Jeff Healey – Last Call

Kellylee Evans – Nina

Laila Biali – Tracing Light

Nikki Yanofsky – Nikki

Alright, so the truth is we enjoyed a quiet Christmas with our families, drinking tasty wine, eating fruity puddings and yakking about what a cracking old lad that Jacques Kallis is. But regardless of our rather uneventful holiday season, we are looking forward to a year of exciting band developments, big gigs in faraway places and new material that will change the face of blues music forever (well…perhaps not…but you can bob your head to it).

So, in the spirit of new developments, you will start to see a lot more content going up on our blog, starting with this new weekly segment showcasing some of the tracks that we think all of you should be listening to. We’ll pick our Top 5 songs for each week with the number one track earning the right to an accompanying YouTube video for your viewing pleasure. So without further adieu, here’s this week’s top 5:

1. Jeff Healey – Yer Blues
2. Stevie Ray Vaughan – Give me Back my Wig
3. Gerry Rafferty – Baker Street (this one is in remembrance)
4. Seasick Steve – Hobo Low
5. Flight of the Conchords – Sellotape (this is highly recommended when you’re in need of a laugh, WARNING: it will remain stuck in your head for at least a week)

Enjoy!

The late, great Jeff Healey went blind as a baby due to a rare form of cancer.  He began playing guitar at three years old.  Playing lap-style came naturally to him and allowed him to develop a unique sound that stunned audiences the world over.  Marshall McLuhan’s quote, “The medium is the message,” certainly applies to Mr. Healey.  Like all great musicians, his instrument (the medium) became an extension of himself and the music that flowed through his guitar was his message. 

I was privileged to see the Jeff Healey Band in person as the warm-up act for Rush in the early 90′s.  My older sister once recounted to me how she saw Rush as a warm-up act for somebody (Chicago, maybe), and I was stunned at the thought of Rush as a warm-up act for anybody.  That night, watching in awe as Jeff Healey did things with a guitar that I didn’t know were possible, I was forced to conclude that he may have been the opening act, but he was no one’s “warm-up” act.  Breathtaking tones erupted from his guitar as his left hand crept back and forth on the guitar neck like a giant spider and his right hand smacked each string with ease and precision.  

Late in his career, Mr. Healey explored his first musical love, Depression-era hot jazz.  He played trumpet as well as guitar and proved his mastery of music extended well beyond the blues-rock that made him famous.  He died of cancer on March 2, 2008 and is deeply missed by family, friends, and the music world.

Jeff Healey, in his prime:

And, playing some hot jazz (trumpet and guitar):

Here is the rare treat of Jeff with Jerry Lee Lewis:

Jeff Healey - vale

Pic: Thanks to en.wikipedia.org

Now here’s a guy that played the guitar very well in a very different way.

Jeff’s story:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeff_Healey

Video Clip

Doing a Beatles or Harrison tune. Okay just joking, all right.

Should add this mp3, it’s a heartbreaker.

05 – The Jeff Healey Band – Angel Eyes

In fact, I don’t know beans about this kid, biographically speaking. But I have that fond feeling about him that you have about people you know well. We spent a lot of time in classes together in high school — English, physics, Latin, probably others. He was quick with a laugh, but carried a load of sadness not far beneath the surface; hung with the bad boys, but was good at heart. I picture him always in a jean jacket and jeans, brown hair slightly feathered, slouching comfortably through the hallways.

And I can hear him, in the desk behind me in the far righthand row of our sophomore-English classroom, singing “Angel Eyes.” Not to me, not to anyone in particular, just to the world.

At our ten-year high-school reunion, this boy and I ended up dancing the night away with a handful of other classmates. We gave each other a big hug as we parted, and made happy drunk talk about how much we liked each other. That was the last time I saw him, and I’m not sure there’s enough to say now to even warrant a note on stupid Facebook. But I sure hope he’s at the twentieth.

4. Acoustic Guitar by Magnetic Fields
3. Guitar Boogie by Chuck Berry
2. Anyone Can Play Guitar by Radiohead
1. My guitar gently weeps by The Beatles (covered by Jeff Healey)

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Jeff Healey (nacido como Norman Jeffrey Healey, 25 de marzo de 1966 – 2 de marzo de 2008) fue un guitarrista y vocalista de jazz, y blues-rock ciego que alcanzó popularidad tanto personal como musical entre los años de la década de 1980 y la de 1990.

Healey nació en Toronto, Ontario, siendo criado en el extremo oeste de la ciudad. Fue adoptado como un bebé; su padre adoptivo fue un bombero. Cuando tenía ocho años de edad, Healey perdió su vista por retinoblastoma, un extraño cáncer de los ojos. Los ojos tenían que ser removidos quirúrgicamente, y se le dio otros ojos sustitutos artificiales.

Carrera musical

Después de haber obtenido su primera guitarra, comenzó a imitar a sus héroes del blues, tales como John Lee Hooker, Muddy Waters y Eric Clapton, y creó un estilo propio. Apoyado sobre su regazo, mientras que su mano derecha pulsaba las cuerdas, la izquierda recorría una y otra vez el mástil, casi al estilo de una pedal steel guitar. Hizo sus primeras presentaciones en público a los seis años de edad, y alternó bandas y estilos hasta formar su propio trío, once años después. Desde los catorce años seleccionaba música de su colección de casi 25 mil discos de pasta en la Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Para Healey, la influencia del pop y el jazz de principios del siglo XX era algo esencial en su formación. A los 17 años fundó un grupo, Blue Direction, junto al bajista Jeremy Litller, el baterista Graydon Chapamn y el guitarrista Rob Quail, los cuales eran sus compañeros de estudio. En una de las visitas de Albert Collins a Toronto, se le abrieron las puertas del Albert Hall de la ciudad para tocar como su invitado, una experiencia que repitió cuando llegaron a la ciudad Stevie Ray Vaughan y B.B. King.

Sus jams en la Taberna Grossman, en su ciudad, fueron la antesala del lanzamiento discográfico de su Jeff Healey Band, con su primer álbum See The Light, que fue editado en 1988 por Arista, con John Rockman y Tom Stephem, en bajo y batería respectivamente. El LP incluía una versión del clásico de ZZ Top “Blue Jeans Blues”.

Después de esp participó en la película Road House (El duro en español) en 1989, protagonizada por Patrick Swayze, en la cual compuso la banda sonora y actuó en las escenas musicales del pub donde transcurre el film.

Con Hell to Pay, de 1990, su éxito creció aún más. Mark Knopfler, Bobby Whitlock y George Harrison entre sus invitados, y una excelente versión de “While my Guitar Gently Weeps”, de The Beatles. Tres años más tarde, Feel This fue el predecesor de Cover to Cover, una mirada propia sobre temas de Led Zepellin, The Rolling Stones, The Beatles y Cream, entre otros. Una colaboración en la banda sonora de Un hombre entre sombras y dos recopilaciones antecedieron a Get Me Some, editado en el año 2000. A partir de entonces, Healey dedicó su tiempo a grabar tres CD de jazz tradicional de las décadas del ’20 y ’30, junto a sus Jazz Wizards, con quienes tocaba en su bar Jeff Healey’s Roadhouse, en Toronto. En las presentaciones, solía cambiar la guitarra por la trompeta y el clarinete. Colaboró con Ian Gillan en Gillan’s Inn, apareció junto a Stevie Ray Vaughan en un video de “Look at Little Sister” y condujo dos programas de jazz en una radio.

Sieno esposo de Cristie y papá de Rachel (13 años) y Derek (3 años), Healey dejó un nuevo CD, Mess of Blues, el cual se lanzó en 2009. En la programación de su Roadhouse, aún se anuncian sus futuros shows.

Enfermedad y muerte

El 11 de enero de 2007, Healey se sometió a una cirugía para extirpar el tejido metastásico de ambos pulmones. En los previos 18 meses, había tenido dos sarcomas removidos de su piernas.

El 2 de marzo de 2008, Healey murió de cáncer en St. Joseph’s Health Centre en su casa de Toronto. Su muerte ocurrió un mes antes del lanzamiento de su álbum, Mess of Blues, el cual era su primer álbum de música rock/blues en ocho años.

Healey es sobrevivido para su esposa, Cristie, y sus dos hijos. Un concierto-homenaje se llevó a cabo el 3 de mayo de 2008 por el beneficio de Daisy’s Eye Cancer Fund, el cual, de acuerdo con Cristie Healey, ha ayudado a hacer grandes avances en la investigación y los avances de futuro para las personas nacidas con la misma herencia genética del retinoblastoma, el cual tuvo su esposo cuando tenía una año de edad. El hijo de Cristie y Jeff Healey también nació con la misma discapacidad.

Discografía

* 1988: See the light
* 1989: Road House Soundtrack
* 1990: Hell to Pay
* 1992: Feel This
* 1993: Evil Blues
* 1995: Cover to Cover
* 1998: The Very Best of JHB
* 2000: Get Me Some
* 2002: Among Friends
* 2004: Adventures in Jazzland
* 2005: Live At Montreux
* 2006: It’s Tight Like That
* 2008: Mess of Blues

Jeff Healey – Blue Jean

Jeff Healey While my guitar gently weeps

The Jeff Healey Band – Stuck In The Middle with You

Hoochie Coochie Man -The Jeff Healey Band

The Jeff Healey Band – Roadhouse Blues

The Jeff Healey Band – When the Night comes falling from the Sky (Road House Soundtrack)

Sass Jordan – Make You A Believer